New school nutrition guidelines to be set for Boston Public Schools

July 13, 2011 at 10:06 am

Massachusetts is preparing to issue new school nutrition guidelines. It is being reported that the state’s Public Health Council will set some of the toughest standards in the country. Joan Salge Blake, a clinical associate professor of nutrition at Boston University’s Sargent College, offers the following comment:

“With an alarming percentage of the state’s youth either obese or at risk of becoming obese, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health has proposed nutrition standards for competitive foods and beverages, which are all food and/or beverages sold or provided in public schools, other than those that are provided as part of federal nutrition programs. These foods include those sold not only in the school cafeteria but also in school stores, vending machines, fund-raising activities, and even school-sponsored events.

“The proposed regulations set limits for the amount of many nutrients, such as fat, saturated fat, sugars, and sodium, that these competitive foods and beverages can contain per serving. The final regulations will be released on Wednesday, July 13th and are expected to go into effect on August 1st.”